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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26408683">City Folk</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Impossibly_Izzy/pseuds/Impossibly_Izzy'>Impossibly_Izzy</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Allergies, Camping, F/M, Fluff, Mac is maybe autistic because I can do what I want, Man vs nature, Summer Camp, parenting</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 12:01:26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,169</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26408683</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Impossibly_Izzy/pseuds/Impossibly_Izzy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After dropping Mac off for his first ever stay at summer camp, Jake and Amy attempt a trip of their own.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Jake Peralta/Amy Santiago</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>41</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Summer 2020 Fic Exchange</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>City Folk</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/feeisamarshmallow/gifts">feeisamarshmallow</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is for the wonderful @feeisamarshmallow, combining prompts for Jake + summer camp and a bit of hurt/comfort. Thanks for the great prompts, Fee, hope you enjoy it!<br/>And for everyone: just FYI there's an allergic reaction in this story, some connected talk of hospitals and mentions of death - feel free to avoid if that's not for you.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>‘Tell me about camp again,’ Mac said.</p><p>It was something he used to do a lot when he was little, asking to be told the same story over and over. The habit had worn off in recent years, but Jake figured it made sense that right now. The kid was nervous.</p><p>‘Well,’ Amy said. ‘I went to typing camp for three summers in a row, and by the end my touch-typing skills were so perfect they started calling me the Finger Queen.’</p><p>‘Heck yeah they did,’ Jake said. They had just come off the highway onto a smaller road, edged with lush grass and towering pine trees. Jake was definitely a city guy, but he had to admit it was beautiful out here. ‘And I was basically the king of my summer camp,’ he added. ‘So we’re perfect for each other.’</p><p>‘Aw,’ Amy said. ‘That’s so cheesy.’ She leant around to look at Mac between the seats. ‘You don’t have to be camp royalty to have fun,’ she said. ‘It took me years. To start with it was pretty awkward, but I ended up having a good time.’</p><p><em>‘In one hundred yards</em>,’ the sat nav said, ‘<em>turn left</em>.’</p><p>‘You’re gonna be fine,’ Jake said.</p><p>‘I’m gonna be fine,’ Mac echoed, but he didn’t sound so sure.</p><p>The road led them to a smaller road, and then an even smaller one, and then a dirt track. Jake would totally have felt cool driving down it if he wasn’t worried about his fancy family-sized car getting stuck. Okay, he felt kind of cool anyway.</p><p><em>‘Your destination is on your right,’ </em>the sat nav said. Jake could have figured it out without help – the wooden archway leading into the camp was the only milestone they’d seen in ages. He parked up in a dirt lot with a handful of other cars. It was surprisingly quiet – there were people milling around, kids and parents and staff, but it wasn’t as chaotic as he remembered first days of camp being.</p><p>‘Ready?’ Jake said.</p><p>‘Ready,’ Mac said, and they piled out of the car.</p><p>They were met by a young woman with a rainbow tie-dyed t-shirt and a clipboard. She was wearing a nametag that said <em>Esti, she/her.</em></p><p>‘Hi!’ she said, looking at Mac. ‘Can I take your name?’</p><p>‘Mac Peralta.’</p><p>Esti nodded, flipping through pages on her clipboard. ‘Is that short for something?’</p><p>‘McClane.’</p><p>‘Ah, nice.’</p><p>‘It’s because of this stupid old movie my dad likes,’ Mac said.</p><p>Amy laughed. Jake tried to look offended.</p><p>‘There we go, McClane Peralta. You’re all signed in, and I’ve made a note that you go by Mac. You’re going to be in Cabin Four.’</p><p>‘Cool,’ Mac said. ‘Coolcoolcoolcool.’</p><p>‘See those guys over there?’ Esti said. ‘They’re waiting for my friend Alex to take them up to Cabin Four so they can drop their bags. Why don’t you go with them, and then you can come back and say goodbye to mom and dad?’</p><p>Mac glanced at Jake and Amy like he was looking for permission. Jake gave him a thumbs up, and he grinned and scurried off to join the others. Encouraging, but still…</p><p>‘Hey, so this is Mac’s first time at camp,’ Jake said. ‘And he has a hard time with new people – like he’s the absolute best when you get to know him, the smartest sweetest kid, but he gets overwhelmed easily, and, like, who can blame him? The world’s bananas. I mean, the other day I arrested this guy who – ’</p><p>‘What my husband means,’ Amy interrupted, ‘is that we’re a little worried about Mac’s ability to adjust to new social situations.’</p><p>Esti smiled at them like they were just more ten-year-olds in her care. Which was a pretty weird look to be getting from someone thirty years younger than them.</p><p>‘We have a lot of campers with different support needs.’ She said. ‘We’re going to get along with Mac just fine.’</p><p>‘Right,’ Jake said. ‘Yeah, coolcoolcool.’</p><p>‘We’re camping in the area tonight,’ Amy said. ‘So if he has a really hard time and wants to leave, call us.’</p><p>‘But you can call us any time,’ Jake added.</p><p>‘We’ll keep that in mind,’ Esti said, patiently.</p><p>She went off the greet another family, and Jake and Amy were left by themselves. Jake walked to the edge of the parking lot, trying to get a good view of the camp. Down a wooded slope was a cluster of cabins, and through the trees he could make out a lake in the distance. He kind of wished he could go down there, walk through the cabins with their narrow bunkbeds, dip his feet in the cold green water of the lake. Jake wasn’t a particularly nostalgic person, but something about this place made it burn through him.</p><p>Mac ran back to them, already looking slightly grubbier, his glasses sliding down his nose.</p><p>‘It’s super cool,’ he reported. ‘Also, you can leave now.’</p><p>‘You’re gonna be okay?’ Amy asked.</p><p>‘Yeah,’ Mac said.</p><p>‘And you’ll call us if there’s any problems?’ Jake added. ‘Remember, if you wanna come home, just –’</p><p>‘Yep, I’ll call you.’</p><p>In all the preparation, the packing, the constant talk of camp, somehow Jake had failed to imagine this moment. His son standing in front of him in his ratty shorts and t-shirt, about to be left on his own in this strange place for the next four weeks. He looked far too small.</p><p>‘I love you despite your terrible movie opinions,’ Jake said.</p><p>‘I love you despite <em>your</em> terrible movie opinions.’</p><p>‘Do you want a hug?’</p><p>Mac shook his head. Jake held his hand out for a fist bump and Mac returned it.</p><p>‘Have fun, sweetheart,’ Amy said. ‘Be good.’</p><p>‘Be as good as you need to be,’ Jake said. ‘It’s not camp if you don’t act out a bit.’</p><p>‘Got it,’ Mac said, grinning.</p><p>‘I love you,’ Amy said.</p><p>Another kid ran over, wearing a camp t-shirt. ‘Hey Mac we’re gonna go to the dining hall now Esti said there’s gonna be ice cream and also games but she didn’t say what games,’ he said, all in one breath.</p><p>‘Toit,’ Mac said. He looked back at Jake and Amy again. ‘See you.’</p><p>‘Bye, sweetheart!’ Amy said.</p><p>He ran off with the others, and suddenly it was just Jake and Amy.</p><p>‘Well,’ Jake said.</p><p>‘Yep,’ Amy said.</p><p> </p><p>Jake was pretty sure the tent would only take ten, fifteen minutes to put up. Jake was wrong. It was an hour-long battle with canvas, ropes, and pegs, and even at the end of it he wasn’t sure the tent was structurally sound.</p><p>‘They all know we’re city folk,’ Amy said, nervously glancing at the other people milling around the campsite.</p><p>Jake flopped down in front of what could now, technically, be described as a tent. ‘I think all my camping knowledge has been replaced by, like, fancy words that they use on NPR. So basically it’s all your fault, but at least I know what “extraneous” means.’</p><p>‘Which is just as sexy,’ Amy assured him.</p><p>‘I’ve basically been avoiding nature since me and Charles and Terry got stuck in that sink hole,’ Jake said.</p><p>Amy frowned. ‘Wasn’t that, like, fifteen years ago?’</p><p>‘I don’t know what to tell you,’ Jake said. ‘That hole was terrifying.’</p><p>‘Title of your sex tape.’</p><p>‘You’re amazing,’ Jake said. ‘Have I ever told you that?’</p><p>‘Maybe once or twice.’</p><p>Jake leant over to kiss her. ‘Y’know,’ he said. ‘This isn’t so bad. A whole night, just the two of us…’</p><p>‘And a bunch of strangers separated from us by a thin piece of fabric,’ Amy added.</p><p>‘Oh, yeah. Hot.’</p><p>Amy laughed. ‘Come on, let’s go for a walk.’</p><p>‘Ugh.’</p><p>‘You can bring snacks.’</p><p>‘<em>Fine</em>.’</p><p> </p><p>They took a trail up to a waterfall, where they met some much more serious hikers and also a flock of squirrels with no fear of humans.</p><p>‘Or is it a pack of squirrels?’ Jake said. ‘A herd?’</p><p>‘A colony, I think,’ Amy said.</p><p>Nature wasn’t so bad when you had a packet of Jolly Ranchers and your beautiful wife with you. The wife more than the candy. Obviously.</p><p>‘What do you think Mac’s doing right now?’ Jake said, as they took the path back towards the campsite.</p><p>‘Ooh, probably bonding with his peers,’ Amy said. ‘He seemed like he was getting on with them, didn’t he?’</p><p>‘Totally,’ Jake said. ‘I’m sure they’re gonna have four weeks of s’mores and boats and staying up way past their bed time.’</p><p>‘I really hope he’s okay,’ Amy said. She was fidgeting with the trail map in her hands. ‘I had such a good time at camp when I was younger and I – I know it’s okay if there’s some things he can’t do. But I want him to have that experience.’</p><p>It normally wasn’t Mac’s thing. He liked to hang out with one or two friends at a time, playing video games or going out on their bikes, but he avoided group activities – Jake had collected him early from a lot of birthday parties and sleepovers. But last year Rosa had shown him <em>The Parent Trap</em>, and he had latched onto the idea of going to summer camp.</p><p>‘Me too,’ Jake said. ‘It was just dope, you know? Campfires, swimming in the lake, playing pranks on Cabin Seven, the one time we saved the camp from an asteroid… Okay, maybe we just pretended we saved the camp from an asteroid.’</p><p>Nature had some downsides. For a start there was no air conditioning, and Jake’s t-shirt was sticking to him. There were also bugs everywhere. Jake was pretty sure he’d already been bitten by something.</p><p>‘Same,’ Amy said. ‘Except for me it was long hot afternoons of typing and dictating. In the evening we’d do crosswords, read, gossip…’</p><p>‘What were you gossiping about? Fonts?’</p><p>‘I know you’re joking,’ Amy said. ‘But there’s a lot of drama in the typeface world.’</p><p>They walked. They looked at the trees, and listened to the birds twittering away. They stopped to look at the view of wooded hills, a lake nestled in the valley, and a fat squirrel ran right over Jake’s foot. He wondered if they should bring Mac and the girls out here – camping would probably be even better with kids clustered around a campfire, dragging their feet or running ahead on trails. They could sit outside and night and look at the stars. Maybe they should have just done that in the first place.</p><p>A fly or something landed on Jake’s arm, and he swatted at it. A sharp pain jolted through him. ‘Ow!’ He clamped his hand over his bicep. ‘<em>Fuck</em>.’</p><p>‘What happened?’ Amy said, instantly tensed, alert.</p><p>‘Don’t freak out,’ Jake said. ‘But I think I got stung by a wasp.’</p><p>‘Jake!’ Amy looked like she was freaking out, despite Jake’s valiant attempt at being calming. ‘We’ve gotta get back to the – oh my god, why did I think this was a good idea? Come on – your epipen.’</p><p>‘Yep, yep, coming.’</p><p> </p><p>It was all downhill from there. Well actually the tent was uphill, which didn’t help at all. The fact that Jake’s face was swelling up also didn’t help – or his dizziness, or the pain in his arm, or the fact that it was getting hard to breathe.</p><p>‘Oh god,’ Amy kept saying. ‘It’s – you’re okay, you’re going to be fine.’</p><p>Jake just gave her a thumbs-up, because he couldn’t really talk. He was feeling decidedly thumbs-down.</p><p>When they got back to the tent he tried to sit down and ended up crumpling to the floor. But he was down, that was the important part. No more walking. Jake wished he could curl up, close his eyes. He felt like he’d just got off a particularly violent rollercoaster, his stomach churning and his head spinning.</p><p>‘Okay, I’m gonna –’ Amy put one hand on Jake’s thigh and used the other to stick the epipen in.</p><p>‘Argh!’ Jake screwed his eyes shut and tried to be dignified. Amy had <em>shot</em> him in this leg once, he should be able to handle a needle. But when he opened his eyes again he couldn’t stop them from watering.</p><p>‘Let me help you up,’ Amy said. ‘We’ve gotta go to the ER.’</p><p> </p><p>It wasn’t good. Jake couldn’t even eat the rest of his Jolly Ranchers. At the hospital they confirmed that it had been a wasp and not a bee, gave him oxygen and antihistamines, and then left him alone for a long time to do nothing but feel miserable.</p><p>‘If Mac calls,’ Jake said, ‘you should just ditch me and go get him.’</p><p>‘I’m sure he can handle a few more hours,’ Amy said. She was walking back and forth across the curtained cubicle, slow enough that it almost didn’t look like nervous pacing.</p><p>‘Whatever,’ Jake said. ‘This place is stupid.’</p><p>‘I know,’ Amy said. ‘We’ve spent too much time in hospitals. But we still had a good day, and you’re going to be fine for our roadtrip home tomorrow. This is just a blip.’</p><p>Jake closed his eyes. He felt better now – not awesome, but not in any danger. He just wanted to go home and sleep.</p><p>‘Hey,’ Amy said, quietly. He felt the thin mattress dip as she perched on the side of his bed. ‘You’re okay.’</p><p>Jake’s mouth was dry. ‘Yeah.’ He opened his eyes. Amy leant in and kissed him on the cheek, and then on the mouth. ‘I’m sorry,’ he said.</p><p>‘You have nothing to be sorry for,’ Amy said. And then, ‘Hey, we managed, like, twenty whole minutes back there without worrying about Mac. If anything you did me a favour.’</p><p>Jake laughed, weakly. His throat hurt. ‘I just don’t want him to be disappointed,’ he said. ‘And what if he gets picked on? Or he doesn’t make friends?’</p><p>‘Then he’ll call us,’ Amy said. ‘We’re here for him, even if there’s some distance in the way.’</p><p>‘I really can’t face camping tonight,’ Jake admitted. ‘I tried nature, and it doesn’t like me.’</p><p>‘We’ll find a hotel,’ Amy promised. She shifted closer, kissed his cheek again. ‘Is anything else bothering you?’</p><p>‘I just –’ Jake sighed. ‘This is gonna sound so dumb.’</p><p>‘Babe. Nothing you say sounds dumb to me.’</p><p>‘<em>Nothing?</em>’</p><p>‘Very few things,’ Amy amended. ‘But seriously, if you’re upset I want to hear about it.’</p><p>‘I just hate the thought of getting killed by a wasp!’ The words burst out of Jake, like they’d been ready to go and waiting for permission. ‘It would be so <em>pointless</em>. And I know that’s bad, I obviously don’t want to die in <em>any</em> way, but the idea of dying because of a freaking wasp is just – <em>ugh</em>.’</p><p>‘Not cool enough?’</p><p>‘Not cool enough.’ Jake leant his head against Amy’s shoulder. ‘I hate how that sounds, but yeah, basically.’</p><p>‘Oh, Jake,’ she said, and he could hear the smile in her voice.</p><p> </p><p>Eventually, the doctor decided that Jake was okay and that he could leave. They drove back to the campsite and deconstructed the tent as quickly as possible, which basically meant taking the poles out and bundling the whole mess into the trunk of the car. Amy cringed a little, but allowed it. They drove until they found a diner, and ordered fries and milkshakes. Jake was <em>starving</em>.</p><p>‘I know it’s not an asteroid,’ Amy said, ‘but we do have a pretty dope story to tell the girls when we get back.’</p><p>Jake dipped a fry in his caramel shake. ‘Only if we really focus on how tough I was.’</p><p>‘Yes, you handled the pain very well,’ Amy said. Definitely humouring him. Jake stuffed the fry in his mouth – it was a perfect combo.</p><p>‘I <em>did</em> walk up a hill,’ he said.</p><p>Amy reached across the table and squeezed his hand. ‘You did.’</p><p>A phone rang, very loudly and very close. Jake glanced around before he realised it was his – he never normally had it off silent. He answered it.</p><p>‘Dad!’</p><p>‘Mac?’ Jake said. Amy leaned in, trying to listen. ‘What’s up, bud?’</p><p>‘I just wanted to tell you,’ Mac said, breathlessly, ‘that we had hot dogs with the squeezy mustard like in a movie and they were kind of good but I don’t think I like mustard, also there’s no cell service and I had to call you on this old timey phone on the wall? I had to like, type in the number? Also camp is fine and I don’t think I’m going to want you to come get me. I just wanted to tell you that.’</p><p>‘Noice,’ Jake said. ‘Did you meet your secret identical twin yet?’</p><p>‘<em>Dad</em>.’</p><p>‘Sorry – talk to your mom.’ He passed the phone to Amy.</p><p>As she listened to their son chat away, Jake let himself relax for the first time in hours. He took a slurp of his milkshake. Mac was <em>fine</em>. He had hotdogs with squeezy mustard! And Jake had managed not to get himself killed by an insect, so that was also a plus.</p><p>‘Bye honey!’ Amy said. ‘Call us again whenever you want.’ She put the phone down on the table, closed her eyes. ‘Oh my god,’ she sighed. ‘I was so worried.’</p><p>‘Me too,’ Jake said. He got up, moved around to her side of the booth so he could hug her. ‘He’s gonna be fine,’ Jake said. ‘He’s tough. Well, he’s sensitive, but he’s also tough.’</p><p>Amy laughed. ‘Just like his dad.’</p><p>Jake draped his arm around Amy’s shoulders and grabbed a few more fries. ‘I think I just like to talk about the asteroid thing to make up for the fact that not that much actually happened at camp,’ he said. ‘Mostly it was just, like, kayaking and trying to get people to kiss me.’</p><p>‘Yeah.’ Amy helped herself to some of Jake’s milkshake. He didn’t mind.</p><p>‘A lot of the kids were kind of jerks, actually,’ Jake said. ‘And one time Neil abandoned me to look after twenty children by myself.’</p><p>‘What a dick,’ Amy said, and Jake laughed.</p><p>‘But it was still good, you know? Like, it made a change from lying around playing video games and waiting for my mom to get home from work.’</p><p>And, when he was at camp, it didn’t matter if his dad was around or not. Jake felt pretty proud of himself for figuring that one out – he couldn’t wait to tell his therapist. He didn’t voice it, but from the way Amy squeezed his hand he figured she was thinking the same thing anyway.</p><p>‘Honestly?’ Amy said. ‘I had some bad times at camp too. I never got past the second round of the spelling bee.’</p><p>‘Typing camp had a spelling bee?’</p><p>‘Yes, and apparently serious typists are also <em>really</em> good at spelling.’</p><p>‘Well, I could have told you that.’</p><p>‘I bet you were too busy kissing people and inventing asteroids to do anything intellectually stimulating.’</p><p>‘Totes,’ Jake said. ‘And anyway, I’m allergic to spelling bees.’</p>
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